John Ratcliff's Weblog

I have a confession to make. For three evenings I have made posts about this 'The Secret' crap. Tonights post makes the fourth in a row and, I promise (I hope) will be the last. My confession is that for the first two posts I had never actually even seen 'The Secret' movie. I had only read online commentary about it and, most disconcerting, the Oprah fan-girls who were jumping up and down about how 'true it was' and 'how it would change their life'. I figured that was enough for me to pass comment. Last night I watched the first twenty minutes online on Google video and my assessment was largely confirmed. However, today, I received my copy of the full video in the mail. Yes, I actually paid about $26 to buy this DVD. I bought it because I wanted to know just what was going out into popular culture. I watched it this evening and I am simply appalled. I would be thrilled if 'The Secret' was only half as bad as my first post had indicated. In my fi...

I realize I have reached the point where I should just 'drop this', and I'm pretty much ready to. However, after a spate of comments on this blog today I thought, hey, maybe I was a bit to harsh? Maybe I'm sending out too many negative vibes into the Universe by being critical of Ms. Oprah and Mr. Crowley? So, I clicked on the following google video link and watched the first twenty minutes of 'The Secret' for myself. Suddenly I realize I was far too kind. Every comment I made about materialism was valid. Every comment I made about bullshit marketing and packaging was dead on accurate. Whenever one of the commentators attempts to wrap any of this into a 'scientific' context bullshit spews forth like a bird regurgitating to fill its nest. Watch it and draw your own opinions. I now stand firmly behind everything I said before. Finally, I must close with the following disclaimer. Thinking in a positive way *is* a good principle upon which to conduct your li...

Last night, I had a few beers and went off on a rant about Oprah and 'The Secret'. You would think I would be done with the topic, that I would have gotten it out of my system but, sadly, I have not. It seems I still have a few beers left in the ice box. Last night my pet peeve was the notion that any of this stuff was 'secret' and I expressed my dislike with the way this material has been marketed. I also said that it was largely 'harmless' since I never waste a lot of time and energy arguing against any philosophy that promotes the benefit of 'positive thinking'. I can't argue too hard, since I believe sincerely that it is better to be a positive person than a negative person. Also, deep down inside, I actually subscribe to a lot of the concepts that are regurgitated in 'The Secret' so my critique has to be a bit more complex than simply saying 'hey, that's a load of New Age bullshit.' My follow up post today focuses on just how...

Brother Greg Stewart just made a post over at the Masonic Traveler Blog on this topic. I enjoyed his post but I believe Greg was a bit too kind. So, here is my own take on the topic. Like Brother Stewart, I don't feel there is necessarily a whole lot wrong with the message in 'The Secret' but what pisses me off is the bullshit they spew to market it. The thing that hacks me off the most is the notion that, somehow or another, *ANYTHING* in 'The Secret' is secret! Moreover, the idea that so called secret societies have 'conspired' to keep it secret is so absurd that it is infuriating. For those who are unaware, 'The Secret' is some New Age, Quantum Physics psychobabble, that leverages against DaVinci Code style conspiracy garbage to peddle it’s well worn tale. Now, the fact that a book like this is out in the public eye is no big deal. New Age books are sold all of the time and make no great stir in the world. Where things get weird is when Oprah Win...

(My sneaky hot Casino Hostess Regina) I had a lot of fun last evening. Our friends Diane and Lenny invited us to attend a casino night fundraiser. It sounded like a worthy cause and a way to have a nice night on the town. The event was held in a large community center and turned out to be a class act all the way. Numerous restaurants provided an incredible selection of entrees as well as desserts. The event cost $35 a person, included all you could eat from this incredible selection of food, an open bar and, finally, play money to gamble with. Personally I don't enjoy gambling that much. However, I am a gamer and I really like Texas Hold-Em. It is so much more of a social game and I like the pace of it. I camped out early at one of the Texas Hold-Em tables and set up for a long night. They played by the regular rules except that no one necessarily had to 'go out' since there were unlimited rebuys. The charity was happy to sell you more play money to keep playing. One other ...

This is my youth group weekend. I spent all day yesterday getting stuff ready for Troy DeMolay and last evening attending the Wentzville Rainbow Girls Assembly #114 Installation. I was having so much fun taking photographs that, when I got home, I was terribly dissapointed that most of them simply didn't turn out. Clearly, at this point, something is quite wrong with our 'fancy' camera. Today I will stick to using my new 'cheap' camera which I am sure will work better for taking pictures during Troy DeMolay's formal Installation. I spent this morning buying gifts for our Sweetheart coronation as well. We are doing something really unique today for our Installation ceremony. It will be performed by the Master Masons of Troy Lodge #34, our sponsoring body. What a tremendous honor and it will really bind the two organizations closer together. I'm thinking this will become a new tradition for our chapter and the lodge. Throughout the year the DeMolay chapter hel...

My absurd and ridiculous electronic toy arrived today. It is a Skype telephone. I can use it while I am in my home and while I am at my office, which is where I spend a lot of my time. Then again...I have a cell-phone which I can use while I am in my office, at home, and anywhere else for that matter. I purchased the option for unlimited free telephone calling within the United States only to have my wife tell me that we already get that with our cell phone. What the heck is this thing even good for? I am about ready to start randomly calling people around the world so I can take advantage of the virtually free international calling rates. Really, the only place this phone is useful is when I am travelling in a foreign country and sitting at a Starbucks. Of course, that happens about once a year, so I'm really thrilled with my wise purchasing decision. Skype offers an option called 'Skype - In' where you can actually get a dial-in phone number for your Skype phone. Then aga...